SuzukiSavage.com - Print Page

SuzukiSavage.com
/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl
General Category >> The Cafe >> Just Jerry saying thanks
/cgi-bin/YaBB.pl?num=1376886767

Message started by gerald.hughes on 08/18/13 at 21:32:47

Title: Just Jerry saying thanks
Post by gerald.hughes on 08/18/13 at 21:32:47

Well, it has been a month since the accident, and I am home doing the rehab and healing thing. I think that I have three or four months of this ahead of me.

I want to thank everyone on the site for the good wishes, prayers, and support. It is warming to know that I am part of such a great group of people.

I have been riding for 53 years, and have logged 15-20K miles a year, so that is somewhere between 800K and a million miles of riding experience. After giving it many hours of thought, I cannot figure out what happened. It was totally out of my experience. I have had front tires blow, brakes lock up, potholes, objects, including animals in the road, but they always throw the bike forward. In this case, the front end went out sideways, to the right. The worst part is that I cannot think of anything that I could do to reduce the chance that it would happen again. Thus the decision to get a trike. This was something that i had considered when I had my hip replacement, but now it seems the only way for me to continue riding.

I cannot say that having an accident is something to look forward to, but I think that mine has done me good. I am 67, retired, and had settled into a comfortable routine. Like many aging people, I had come to spend a goodly amount of my attention on my physical problems (Heart attacks, a stroke, diabetes, bum hip) and was unhappy with my general condition and what i had to look forward to.

Well, the accident changed all that. i spent a week in the hospital, and a week in a care/rehabilitation center. It made me realize just how blessed I had been, and continued to be. I was injured, but I would recover. Most of the people in the care center were not going to recover. They were going to die there. The person in the be next to me had just lost his leg. Worse yet, he had no friends, no mate, no one to care for him. I don't believe that there was a person that I met in that facility who would not have gladly traded places with me. GIves you a little different point of view.

So, while I have a lot of work ahead of me, I am not afraid of hard work. I know that I will ride again, be it on three wheels.

Title: Re: Just Jerry saying thanks
Post by Serowbot on 08/18/13 at 21:39:37

... and Gerr,... that was your 999th post...

1 more post!... ;D...
1 more post!... ;D...

8-)...

Title: Re: Just Jerry saying thanks
Post by justin_o_guy2 on 08/19/13 at 01:14:43

If ya tore your rotator cuff, youre gonna be at Least 3 months before ta even drive a car,,, Im Almost ready to drive,, almost.

Title: Re: Just Jerry saying thanks
Post by ToesNose on 08/19/13 at 04:29:34

None of us like to hear of anyone getting into an accident, especially when there are serious injuries. I'm glad that you and JOG weren't hurt worse then you were and that you are taking away a positive outlook from your ordeal Jerry ;)

I've never ridden a trike, but I'm sure it beats a tin can! ;D

Title: Re: Just Jerry saying thanks
Post by old_rider on 08/19/13 at 05:09:00

Great to hear you are getting better and want to ride again!

There are several different ways to get a trike....you can buy one that was built, you can have a bike "converted", or you can buy a "add-a-trike" system.

When you get ready look at all three possibilities, they all work, its just up to you how much dough you want to spend. I put a Tow-pac system on my Harley, a used one at that, so it was relatively cheap ($2,000), and you can find used systems as low as $500-600.

Title: Re: Just Jerry saying thanks
Post by LANCER on 08/19/13 at 07:40:24

It is so good to hear from you and that your spirits and motivation are so good after an accident like this.
Many prayers in our house went out for you.

I cannot figure out what happened.
I had such a similar experience with my accident. A week+ in ICU and then upstairs, followed by a week in a rehab hospital and more rehab after release. A full year was required to get back to a basic level of "normal" activity. It surely does cause you to rethink priorities in life.

I've been riding a lot of years but don't have nearly as many miles.
At the moment the accident occured and afterward, when trying to figure out exactly what went wrong and WHY...the only answer was that it was all in God's hands. He allowed it and then kept me from being killed or being paralyzed from the waist down. No question about that !

Anyway, welcome back and continued healing.

Title: Re: Just Jerry saying thanks
Post by Skid Mark on 08/19/13 at 17:03:37

Good to hear you will be ok. Take it easy and recover well. Nothing wrong with a trike. Have a look at the Canams too. Interesting concept, but pricy.

Title: Re: Just Jerry saying thanks
Post by Boofer on 08/19/13 at 17:16:03

Jerry, you gettin' a trike with both wheels in the front---or the rear? :)

Title: Re: Just Jerry saying thanks
Post by gerald.hughes on 08/19/13 at 20:06:59

Tried a CanAm and really didn't like it. Also thought about the three wheeled Piaggio, but they are all too complicated and don't feel right. I will go with a traditional trike. I know that I will have to learn to ride all over again, but thats ok with me. Strangely, I have talked to a lot of people on trikes, and they almost universally like them. On the other hand, I haven't been able to find anyone on a Can Am who is really enthusiastic about them. Though to be fair, almost everyone that I have met on a CanAm is new to riding, and doesn't have anything to compare it to.

Title: Re: Just Jerry saying thanks
Post by Yonuh Adisi FSO on 08/20/13 at 23:46:37

Hey Jerry, good to see you on the mend and glad you are still going to ride (trike or bike riding is riding). Just take it easy and don't jeopardize your recovery.

Title: Re: Just Jerry saying thanks
Post by Midnightrider on 08/22/13 at 13:15:21

Best wishes my friend, heal quickly!